Steve Litchfield

Argh, I hate computers. After battling a problem with my Vista laptop, wherein it wouldn't play some MP4 files but would others (all using Quicktime Player), it turned out that the problem was an obscure incompatibility between Quicktime and Vista's ReadyBoost system (adding USB stick memory to cache system files). Go figure. Who on earth could have connected those two?? I've been eyeing up a Mac for ages..... but hang on, it was Apple who wrote Quicktime Player, so they're not exonerated here either. So I tried installing Ubunto Linux on a spare laptop, to have a play. Five HOURS later and the thing still wasn't even installed. I gave up. 8-( Why do computers have to be so complicated and erratic?

Thr first, the absolute first thing I do when receiving a new Windows PC is to pop into Control panel and turn all the blasted effects, animations and curved-cornered windows off. The end result is something quite a bit faster, as the processor hasn't got to keep recalculating all the visual eye candy. But Windows XP has got nothing on its successor Vista, or even the new OS inside the Apple iMac. DOES EVERY SINGLE ACTION HAVE TO BE ACCOMPANIED BY RIPPLES, SWOOSHES AND TV-LIKE FADES? I think not. Is it just me? Can't information on a computer screen just appear and not have to be faed in or faded out? Maybe I really am getting old. This is computing for toddlers.

Like many others, my Windows XP box is starting to show signs of wear and tear and the reality of needing a new PC at some point in the next few months is starting to hit home. Yet I'm really not convinced by Windows Vista. And yes, I've read all the reviews and articles. To my mind, Vista is yet another example of Windows getting more and more bloated and of eye candy getting in the way of just 'getting the job done' (TM). There's no way in hell I'm upgrading any of our XP devices to Vista and I'm fighting to find a well-priced replacement device that doesn't come with Vista pre-loaded... I just know that all sorts of accessories and utilities simply won't work under the new OS, however many 'compatibility' layers Windows Vista now has. Or... I could buy a Mac. Now THERE'S a thought. Watch this space.